DPCC Co-Chair Dingell: Trump’s National Emergency is a Constitutional Crisis
WASHINGTON, DC – Congresswoman Debbie Dingell, Co-Chair of the House Democratic Policy and Communications Committee (DPCC), appeared on At This Hourwith Kate Bolduan on CNN to discuss the resolution she co-sponsored to stop the President's national emergency declaration and protect our democracy. Below are excerpts from the interview. Click here to watch the video
"It's hard, we had a love affair, but I can hear him in my ear telling me to get back to work, there's lots to do. I'm back at work and we have a lot of things we have to do. He was pretty clear in his last day, he wrote about the challenges we face and I'm committed to doing just that. He is the man that I love. We had a love affair that most people never had. We never should have never gotten together and we somehow did. We were a couple. We were a team in every sense of the word. We are still a team. I know his spirit is in me. I miss him. It's really hard. I'm not going to lie but I am going to be honest about it. I think sometimes everybody tries to be tough and pretend everything is okay. Everything isn't okay. I have a new normal and I'm working into that new normal."
"I believe that we are at a constitutional crisis. Our forefathers wrote a Constitution that had a very strong system of checks and balances. I have talked to a lot of Republicans. I don't know how many are going to end up voting with us today so I don't know if it will be veto proof. I think that this is the first test that has many Members soul searching about what our role is and what our function is. I do believe that it will, if it passes both the House and the Senate, I think there are enough votes people may not have publically said it, the question is going to be can they override veto? There are two different issues here. I don't know anybody Republican or Democrat that doesn't care about national security in this country. How we keep us safe is a legitimate discussion. We listen to each other's perspectives and work it through. It is very clear what the role of Congress is and what the role of the executive branch is. There are three branches, each with clear roles, and I hope that my colleagues on both sides of the aisle are going to look at what that is and understand what their responsibility is to the American people and to this democracy."
"I think it's almost certain that this will end up in the court. I think that the American people are going to be talking to a lot of the Republicans about what this is. I think that the first round of votes in the House and Senate will not be the end of this. I think people are engaging and are looking at the question and they are understanding it. It is important to separate what this vote really is about. This is a constitutional issue. It's about protecting our democracy and that's what this vote is about for me today."
"I think it is important that we have oversight hearings. I think it is important that we understand -- oversight is important . I don't know if this man [Michael Cohen] knows what the truth is and what it's not. I think we'll see what he has to say. He will be testifying under oath. I'm not even sure under oath, I don't mean to cast aspersions but we do we need to know what the truth is. We need to investigate Russian interference in our elections. I'm going to say to you that while this is an important part of our function we need to get on with people's business and there are a lot of things we need to be working on and proactively delivering on legislation for the American people, as well."